Top 7 Must Have Apps for Rooted Android devices

Okay, so you’ve rooted your shiny new phone and now you want to find out what it can REALLY do! As you may have learned in one of our previous lessons [What is Rooting on Android? The Advantages and Disadvantages], besides giving you the ability to install a custom ROM, rooting also gives you access to lots of great new apps. Finding those root specific apps can be a hassle. So below I’ve a compiled a list of “must have” apps that I feel ALL rooted Android devices should have. Take a look below and sound off in the comments section if you have any recommendations of your own!

Titanium Backup

Titanium Backup is an extremely powerful app that allows you to backup & restore all of your apps, data, and market links. The thought of losing all of my apps is a scary one! I don’t know what I would do without this app! This is one of the first apps I install on my smartphone after rooting it. It fully supports protected apps & system apps. You can do 0-click batch & scheduled backups. You can move any app (or app data) to/from the SD card. This version is Free but there is also a PRO version available that offers even more features. Did I mention you can also use this app to remove BLOATWARE? Oh yeah!! [Market Link]

Wireless Tether

This is the app that makes most people to want to ROOT their devices. This app allows you to wirelessly share the 3G/4G internet connection from your Android smartphone with other devices (laptop, netbook, tablet, etc). Get it? You won’t have to pay an extra $30 or whatever it is a month to your service provider for that “Wireless Hotspot” feature! Share the internet connection from your phone wirelessly! Do I condone this? Of course not! But it is my job to inform you of what your phone is capable of doing! So give it a try… but be warned, the service providers are starting to crack down on people who use this app and you may get a nasty later in the mail telling you to stop using it or to cough up the $30 a month fee. Don’t say I didn’t warn you! [Market Link]

ROM Manager

Another MUST HAVE app for any rooted Android is ROM Manager. This app allows you to do the following:

Superuser

This app helps you manage what apps are allowed to access protected areas of your system. This app is a must have for all rooted Android devices. It’s the best way to grant and manage Superuser rights for your phone. [Market Link]

AdFree

AdFree is a great app that’s sole purpose is to removes ads from the browser and other apps on your Android device. It works like magic! No more having to deal with annoying ads popping up when you are playing with an app. Of course, it’s not perfect and some ads may make it thru every now and again. But, for the most part, it eliminates the majority of those pesky ads from getting in the way of using your Droid. [Market Link]

ShootMe (or Screen Shot It)

ShootMe is an app that allows you to take screenshots of your device. I use it all the time for lessons on this website. I would be lost without it! Just fire up ShootMe and give a good sustained shake or shout to take a screenshot. [Market Link] If this app doesn’t work for you then another one I’d recommend is Screen Shot It.

Quick Boot

Quick Boot is one of the simpler apps available for rooted devices but it is also (in my opinion) an incredibly handy one. This app allows you to quickly and easily reboot your device, power off your device, or boot your device into recovery or bootloader mode. It also gives you the ability to create shortcuts / widgets on your home screen to boot with one click. [Market Link]

John A

I'm a huge Android fan and also the founder of the DroidLessons website. I started obsessing about the Android platform as soon as I got my HTC EVO phone in mid-2010. Ever since then, I have been obsessed with learning all that I can about the Android OS and sharing that knowledge with my friends and family.